Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-12-13
COUNTY ROADS.
4 Feasible Plan for Their Construction
Proposed by Hon. W. 8. PEN
dleion OF this CIiy.
Good County Roads Can BIS S,cursd by
the AID OF Corporations Organized
Under The EIistn Laws.

lem, pressing for solution. Oaly e few
days since some lsdies who desired
visiting short distance in the cOun-
try in light carriage, had to abandon
the undertaking and returned to town
tRe roads were simply impassabis snd
the city was practically walled in from
the country. Road talk vas plentiful on
the streets. Everybody admitted the ne
cassitY OF good ROADS snd' various were
the remedies suggested.
Among the may plans for securing
good roads for Tarrant county talked OF,
and the most practicable aud feasible VI
apy heard, was tnat proposed by H0h
W. S. Pendleton, who. iii conversation
win GAZETTE representative on ths
-ubl CT said: 81 have studied this road
question thoroughly and the necessity tor
good dirt roads Is growing daily. II
ever start could be mace III the right
direction, am quite confident that 1t
would prove so satisfactory as to MAKE
the idea popular. There is statute
under which road companies for building
road can be organized. They obtain
charters and proceed to build
good roads and they are allowed to
establish toll gates upon them and collect
UGH toll as the Commissioners court
may fix snd establish as reasonable
and fair. They are compelled to keep
these roads in good repair, and they must
De satisfied with such revenue as can be
derived from travel at regulation rates"
"Don't you think, though, that these
corporations collecting toll from the PEG
pile would soon become distss'efu ?"
/ "No doubt they would, but my idea is
not to permit capitalists to do this for
profit. l believe IL the merchants Of Fort
Worth and the various towns in the
county would join with the farmers alODg
the line Of 6 proposed road, they could
organize company of home people. The
merchants could furnish some money,
the farmers likewise, AMI the farmers
cou.d take stock for damages to Ills
property caused by the riga'
OF way, or the company or
corporation could issue bonds
.nu 90 ain money in the markets at z
low rate of interest. NV the primary
| Idea would not be to make money on tie
investment, but TO secure the road, and
| therefore, the Commissioners cnur
C luld strange q rate OF toll charges SUN
| cient barely TO pay, say 10 pc
cent. interest on the investment,
| running expenses AMI repairs,
| aud per cent. to pa,
the original cost. Thus, the Investors
| would pc receiving good rate of inter
est On their investment, they would have
good roads and in twenty years or less
| he rosd would have paid for itself, auo
could then be turned over free to the peo
| pie"
"Then your proposition is to organic
| 8 corporation for the purpose of con-
! structing roads to be ultimately free
thoroughi=fesf"
"EX city; we must bear in mind that
! The OBJECT is TO secure good roads with
| out naEing them b1rdensome to the peo-
| pie, and we Can do this, believe, by
| making the investment In the enterprise
.ayipg one-that is, one tho. will paw a
reasonable return fixed by the Conmis-
sioper's court"
"Do you think the farmers would 60
into ,he enterprise pretty freeiy?"
81 DO. Farmers iced good roads mole
than any other class of people. Those
| living along the line q the road wouIG
otcpme stockholders, and while they
might, under other circumstance, object
to paying toll, they would cheerfully pay
it when by so doing they would be
not only paying themselves interest on sn
| investment but they would be gradually
paying for 3 free maoadamized or
grsvelled rosd. TheD, too, the stock
holders would have but trife of the cost
to pay. II a good road is established
euy where through this county there will
| be outside travel enough on il in a
short time to pay, tie sresteT
part Of the cost Incurred. II
we had good macad4mz-d roads to
Grapevine, OAK Grove, Mansfield and
Arlington, or IN fact, to all leading poIn 8
IN the county, there would be outsid e
trsyel enough passing over them to psy
| most all the expense. These road Cor
porstions have the right TO condemn pro-
perty to public uses as have railroads, but
very little Of that would be necessity, be-
| cause acting with the commissioners, the
| lines Of road now in use could be utilized
with only such variations as would DE
| found necessary for their curtsilment or
Improvement. II the people would take
this matter up and try the experiment Oh
some one road it would solve the ros d
probe m III short time. The black lands
Of TarTant county ere such tina,
in wet weather the roads sre
impossible. In early times peopl.
could spread out over the prairie and
thus avoid cutting mp the roads, but now
that the country is settling up, and tnaI
the principal roads have to pass through
long lanes, no such immunity can be On
| 'yed. l had occasion - experience the
truth Of this statement recently. l de.
sired tu send man some distance in the
couu1r on business, but be could not 60
OWN, To the fact that some of the lanes
were 10 such freigh;ful condition tba
| ne cou not ride horse through
them Without great Inconvenience. WheU
vehicles need not try It. IN nh that the
imperative ut cessity, and the best enc
only practical way to secure them, In M
| Judgment, is the manner indicated"